I love sleep everyone loves sleeps but it’s more amplified on infants and toddlers. There is always a peace that comes with kids sleeping. The Little angels give an exclusive cuteness that is rare.  During first year babies sleep more benefiting their holistic development. It takes them around three to six months to develop their internal body clock. During this time, they will naturally sleep more at night and be awake more during the day. However, some infants have mixed sleeping patterns which are challenging to monitor.

Teaching babies how to sleep will serve them well as they grow old. It might take more time for the child to get used to it, but it requires patience and more time, and parental effort. Regardless the method used, to make the baby fall asleep independently, the process takes a lot of consistency.

Gentle infant sleep training

Gentle infant sleep training is teaching your infant to self-soothe and fall asleep independently without help from their parents, guardians, or caregivers. Sleep training aims for the infant to be comfortable sleeping for several hours on their own.

Gentle infant sleep training: does it work?

Yes. Gentle infant sleep training is efficient but requires a lot of patience. They can take time to produce meaningful results, but the process is often more enjoyable.

What is the right age for sleep training?

The right age for sleep training is based on your infant's development. It is usually somewhere between four to six months of age. At this age, babies have not had much time to get used to nursing and are also developmentally ready to learn the skill of falling asleep independently.

Around four months of age, some babies go through a sleep worry due to their sleep cycle change, and there are more extended periods of lighter sleep per cycle.

Gentle infant sleep training concerns.

Here are some factors to consider when deciding whether to sleep train your infant gently.

They are as follows

• Age

Make sure your infant is at the right age to start training. The child should be between four to six months of age.

• Baby's Health

As you plan to gently train your child, ensure the baby is in good health to minimize the inconvenience of the training process.

•  Waking often in the night

If your infant is awake throughout the night wanting to be soothed or always breastfeeding, this is the right time to start the sleep training.

• Normal Baby Sleep

If your infant already sleeps well, there may be no reason to force the baby to sleep training unless you notice some changes.

• Parents commitment

Gentle infant sleep training usually takes a lot of commitment and consistency from everyone. When starting sleep training, you must be ready as it is emotionally and physically challenging.

Gentle infant sleep training techniques explained.

The best sleep training techniques for your infant will depend on personal preference and your child’s character. Here are some gentle infant sleep training techniques explained to assist you in narrowing down.

They include;

• Be patient

Babies are unique and take different sleep patterns. However, we can never force the baby to sleep or adapt to a pattern. The process can be frustrating and tiring but with patience it’s manageable.  

• Consistent bedtime

Create a consistent plan by picking a bedtime and sticking to it every night, creating a new strategy for the infant.

• Create a routine

Have a bedtime routine for your infant and use it during the day and night for the baby to get used to it.

• Soothe alone

By putting your infant down when they are getting drowsy, they will follow the habit of falling asleep on their own. Even after waking up at night, they put themselves back to sleep without help.

• Stay away from the infant.

It is essential when you find a way to separate yourself from them to create room for them to self-soothe.

• Observe the infant's health.

Some reasons that make the baby wake throughout the night are beyond sleep training. The baby might feel unwell and have wet diapers or teeth; hence, it must be soothed and cared for.

• Take time to respond to the child.

Please don't rush into your child's cry all the time; let them cry for some time to create efforts of self-soothe.

Advantages of gentle sleep training methods for infants

The time it takes to commit to gentle infant sleep training entirely will depend on the technique used to pursue the training and the child's unique needs. Here are some of the benefits of gentle infant sleep training.

They comprise;

• Improves infant’s sleep

Once the baby is fully sleep trained, they often sleep throughout the night, improving overall sleep.

• Babies learn to self-soothe

When the babies wake, they often cry and need to be taken and soothed. Sleep training helps the baby to self-soothe on their own.

• It increases the cognitive function of the baby.

Sleep is where the magic of physical and mental growth takes place. When the baby is sleeping, the body is resting, and the brain is processing all the new and exciting things the toddler learned during the day.

• Improves parents sleep

When the infant falls asleep throughout the night, this goes back to the parents as they no longer wake up to feed or soothe.

• Not much stress on the parents

Waking up throughout the night causes less sleep, leading to stress for parents or caregivers. With the strain parents/caregivers should work to attain the self-sleep trick for better sleeping patterns?